Filmed during a Professional Training Workshop in New York, Franz Schubert‘s late piano sonatas come to life in this performance guide that includes video clips, written commentary, and an animated score, allowing the user to simultaneously watch Mr. Fleisher teach from the keyboard and study the notated music. Select any combination of 24 separate video clips from six categories to build your own tailor-made video master class from a range of topics.
In December 2007 American pianist Leon Fleisher reached a high point in a remarkable career when he was awarded a Kennedy Center Honor in Washington, D.C.
A child prodigy, Fleisher began studying the piano at age four, gave his first public recital at eight, and at nine was taken under the wing of the legendary Austrian pianist and teacher Artur Schnabel. Fleisher made his debut at Carnegie Hall with the New York Philharmonic under Pierre Monteux in 1944, and he ensured his place among the top pianists of the day when he won Belgium’s Queen Elisabeth International Piano Competition in 1952. Thereafter, he was much in demand by orchestras, concert promoters, and record companies. Especially notable was his series of concerts and recordings featuring the concertos of Mozart, Beethoven, and Brahms with George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra.
In early 1965 Fleisher began suffering from a malfunction of his right hand: the ring and little fingers curled uncontrollably to his palm. The problem was diagnosed in 1991 as focal dystonia, a condition related to repetitive-stress syndrome, which not infrequently affects musicians. Undaunted, Fleisher focused his energies on teaching and conducting. Eventually Fleisher began performing left-hand pieces for piano. (A number of such works—including compositions by Maurice Ravel, Sergey Prokofiev, Benjamin Britten, and Paul Hindemith—were written for Paul Wittgenstein, a gifted pianist who lost his right arm in World War I.) In addition, Fleisher commissioned or inspired new works from William Bolcom, Lukas Foss, Gunter Schuller, and several other notable composers. During his years of affliction, Fleisher sought relief in numerous treatments, including brain surgery; in the mid-1990s he discovered that occasional injections of Botox (botulinum toxin used as a muscle relaxant) combined with Rolfing (a type of massage therapy) ameliorated the condition. Fleisher returned to two-hand performance in 1995; his right hand steadily improved, although he did not abandon the left-hand repertoire. In 2004 he played a triumphant return recital at Carnegie Hall, and he made his first solo two-hand recording since the 1960s. A short documentary film by Nathaniel Kahn about Fleisher’s persistence, Two Hands, was nominated for a 2007 Academy Award.
Leon at the BSO, Shoot Day 3
(Leon Fleisher playing “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring”)
/patrick
Piano News Flash
2019-03-26
Mehldau's New Piano Concerto
Mehldau gives us celestial harp flourishes. He gives us fruity chord clusters. He gives us echoes of John Adams, Ravel and more than a dollop of Hollywood. Then he does it all over again. Read more at ft.com
2019-03-25
Jenny Lin Capturing Glass
An excellent, expressive pianist whose large discography includes both standard repertory and contemporary works, Lin recently recorded all 20 of Glass's Piano Etudes (1990-2012), and she included five of them (with a sixth as an encore) on her program. Read more at pressherald.com
2019-03-24
The Music Typewriter
There are several Keaton music typewriters thought to be in existence in museums and private collections. It was marketed in the 1950s and sold for around $225. The typewriter made it easier for publishers, educators, and other musicians to produce music copies in quantity. Composers, however, preferred to write the music out by hand. Read more at mymodernmet.com
2019-03-23
The Schiff Piano Lecture-Recitals Go Bach
Sir Andras Schiff continues his series of lecture-concerts dedicated to the works of Bach. Next week Schiff explores another of the Baroque master's iconic scores: the first part of the Well-Tempered Clavier. Read more at barenboimsaid.de
2019-03-22
Lang Lang's Advocacy
At The Global Awards 2019, pianist Lang Lang spoke out about the lack of music education in state schools - and warns the industry is missing out as a result.
Speaking to an audience of more than 3,000 people at Hammersmith's Eventim Apollo, he said: "In our world, music lessons have become a real challenge." Read more at classicfm.com
2019-03-21
It's Piano Day 2019!
On the year's 88th day it's Piano Day. Founded by Nils Frahm back in 2015, the events start on the 88th day of the year, just like the number of keys on the instrument. The international events start in Long Beach on March 22. Read more at pianoday.org
2019-03-20
The Ten Top Romantics
Five out of ten Top Romantic composers of the Gramophone list were explicitly piano composers. So, who are they? Read more at gramophone.co.uk
2019-03-19
Mighty Pianist Lineup in Verbier
In addition to more than 50 main stage concerts, the Festival also presents over 100 affordable and free events which offer audiences the chance to explore classical music. Read more at pianistmagazine.com
